Habs attract 17,000 for Easter Sunday practice

The Canadiens held a 10 a.m. open practice at the Bell Centre on Easter Sunday and attracted more than 17,000 fans to the Bell Centre.

Yet more proof that hockey is a religion in Montreal.

The Canadiens were coming off a 3-0 victory over the New York Rangers the night before that put them in first place in the Northeast Division and second in the Eastern Conference with a 22-7-5 record, seven points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Habs played a classic rookie prank on Nathan Beaulieu at the practice, the morning after he made his NHL debut. Beaulieu was the first one to take the ice and the rest of the Canadiens stopped at the bench and left him to skate around alone in front of the huge crowd. You can watch the video of it by clicking here.

Michael Ryder won the shootout competition at the practice.

Veteran defenceman Tomas Kaberle cleared NHL waivers on Sunday.

The Canadiens are back in action Monday when the Carolina Hurricanes visit the Bell Centre (7:30 p.m., RDS, TSN Radio 690).

588 Comments

I cannot pretend to know what should or could be the best formation for the teams Penalty Kill, but do think it has improved somewhat the past few games. Having a responsible centerman like Halpern helps quite a bit, and Prust will also be a welcomed addition to the PK as he gets back into gameshape.

No doubt strategy is a big key, but seems to me effort level is huge for the PK and having two guys like that added should be of some impact.

If you look at the struggles this season on the PK I don’t think it’s been due to a lack of effort Gerald.

I think that it’s as simple as that when the puck’s low both of our defensemen are pressuring and our forwards are covering the front of the net. And because of that there have been huge and very dangerous areas vacated in front of and around the net.

I just spoke with Reg Houle about tickets, and he also told me that
we just traded this morning Tinordi, Weber, Patern, Dumont, and our 1st pick this year for the other Weber in the western conference!
Seems like a lot to give up. Is this other Weber any good.??

Pacioretty is by a huge margin our most dangerous shooter and our best goal scorer. He’s under 8%.

Shooting percentage doesn’t factor that a fourth line’s job is to get whistles in the offensive zone. It doesn’t take into account that players often shoot just to generate rebounds for their linemates and it doesn’t track how often a player puts the puck on net for the sake of getting a whistle and a line change.

The amount of shots a player takes overall is probably a better stat to show how effective a player is. The more they’re shooting the more ice they’ve created for themselves in the offensive zone.

And by that measure your top four would be Pacioretty, Plekanec, Gionta and Gallagher. Those four interestingly enough have probably been our four best forwards. Conversely the bottom four(top 9 only) would be Prust, Bourque, Desharnais and Galchenyuk. Prust because he isn’t a scorer, Bourque because he’s been hurt, and Galchenyuk and Desharnais because they can’t create space for themselves in the offensive zone, for different reasons.

To add to this… Shooting percentage also has a HUGE amount of luck factored in. The reality is that most forwards will end up between 8 and 12% and most defenceman between 4-9% with long term results (several seasons). Any time you see someone outside of that range you can usually attribute it to Puck Luck, and know that regression to the mean is coming.

For the most part, the NHL’s best goal scorers, score more than their colleagues because they take more shots on net than their colleagues, not because their shooting percentage is better.

With Halpern and adjustments by the coaching staff hopefully we shoud see an improvement in the pk…In the playoffs the pk will be very important because you can outplay a team in a series yet get beaten because of a poor pk…

A good shutdown Dman would help but I’m not at all in favour of paying a high price to acquire one as we’d likely only need him shorter term.

I may get burned for this, but I’d be in favour of re-acquiring Hal Gill. Don’t know much about his play since he left Montreal, but I know he’s often been a healthy scratch in Nashville. Would be a very minimal cost to get him back I assume. Even as a 7th Dman he could be good to have around in case we need help on the PK – just plug him into the lineup if you need him.

Gill and Therrien do not work well together. Gill stated publicly that he was less than thrilled with Therrien during his stint in Pittsburgh. I really like Gill, as a PK specialist, and as a mentor for young d-men. I admired how he stood behind Subban and supported Subban.

Yes, but their were many that did not like Therrien, but would it be different under the changed therrien? got to admit he’s not the same coach as he had been in the past, At least from an outsider looking in perpective.

I put that on Rutherford. You never, as a GM, talk about other team’s players, especially after trading them away. How would he have liked it if Shero in Pittsburgh had called Jordan Staal a horrible team guy?

Charles Hudon, like Brady Vail did will now join the Bulldogs on a profesional tryout.

Great news. Many said that this new regime would have a better focus on development. Those people really didn’t have anything other than new faces to validate that claim but today they’ve been proven correct.

It’s great to see moves like this.

Edit: Marc Antoine Godin also notes that Sebastian Collberg may come to Hamilton this season to finish up the year with the Bulldogs.

I hadn’t heard about Collberg signing on for another year in Sweden, but if he did, that shouldn’t really matter. It’s only a Professional Tryout Contract he may sign with the Habs so there’s no obligations by the player or the team that would affect anything in Sweden.

In Absolute mathematical terms 62 would be the number since the Winnipeg although in playoff spot are the team that Montreal would have to beat for the remaining 8th spot and not the islanders with the possibility of getting 61 total. It’s not the 61 because Carolina and Winnipeg have a possiblity earning 64 & 62 repectively total even though they sit in 10th and 3rd respectively currently the Carolina team has a potential of earning more points than the Rangers and Winnipeg.

But in the realm of probability they probably would need like a 2 & 1/2, since every team plays each other, on the road to the playoffs, they probability diminishes because those totals are based on a team winning a 100% of their remaining games. Since it would it is statistically impossible for 4 or 5 teams to win 100% of their remaining games I think 54 is a more realistic magic number for a playoff berth.

Habs can do the Jets a big favour tonight with a win in regulation. Canes have a few games in hand and the play the Rangers. Would be quite something if all the Cdn. teams in the East make the playoffs.

Is it possible to place a filter so any post that speculates trading a player with a NTC gets automatically deleted?

Alternatively, can you add an extra line to the standard disclaimer ?

“Hockey Inside/Out encourages lively debate, but there is a zero-tolerance policy regarding racism, profanity and behaviour that we deem to be offensive.
We will, without warning, ban those who do not abide by this simple rule, so as to maximize the enjoyment of readers and participants of both sexes and all ages …

Players with No Trade Contracts cannot be moved without their agreement and if you continue to propose trading Brian Gionta for a knuckle dragger who will “take care of Lucic and Chara”, your post will be deleted and some large men will come to pay you a visit”

I’ve heard rumours of a huge trade in the works. No details yet on who we’re shipping out, but it’s likely MAB is coming back to the Habs. The asking price must be huge – likely at least 2 roster players and a first.

__________________________
☞ The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. ~ Richard Feynman ☜

I’m not sure if anyone has brought this up yet…but the recovery time for a broken jaw is 6-8 weeks. With a month left in the regular season, that puts Crosby’s likely return at somewhere after the first or second round of the playoffs.
The Pens obviously have a ton of depth, but losing the best player in the world like this has got to hurt their chances. And up ours considerably.

__________________________
☞ The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. ~ Richard Feynman ☜

Reminiscent of how Seguin reacted to contact from Emelin just before Lurch went and pounded on the plate in his (Emelin’s) head.

When I see this kind of crap in minor hockey, I usually comment that it is taught behaviour. In Boston / Julien’s case, it appears to be condoned, which would be OK if it weren’t for the frickin’ hypocrasy.

Quite frankly, it embarrasses me now that Claude Julien was once part of the Habs organization.

Julien is probably the biggest hypocrite next to John Torterella when it comes to whining about the officials and what other teams are doing. Julien did the same thing in the playoffs against Vancouver with the biting incident. He said his team didn’t resort to that and the very next game one of his players did just that, can’t remember who exactly it was but they did bite back.

To you from failing hands we throw the torch, be yours to hold it high.

I think a key player missing for Boston is Chris Kelly, he really seemed to legitimize their 3rd line. If they have to give up a core type player to get Clowe, it could do more damage to that lineup than helping them.

Will be interesting to see what kind of reaction the KHL has to this. Many of us here talk about what it will take to make the NHL take dirty hits out of the game, will the media in Russia pressure the league the same as it would here? Are contracts all insured there, if so who pays the teams or players themselves.

Oh okay, sorry didn’t really read closely the link you provided. Yes I now see that is a lower league. Tragically it will probably be a story for a little bit of time and then forgotten about. Not all that dissimilar to when that young man died playing Sr. hockey in Ontario, Don Sanderson for the Whity Dunlops I believe.

I also feel very sorry for him and his family, and this episode could so easily become a foreshadowing of something here.

But Burly I have a darker cynicism about this than I’ve ever detected in you. Namely, that the media coverage of an NHL hockey death would actually please the League, with even media pressure (equipment changes, rule changes, demands for player safety, massive drops in young children taking up hockey) only serving to feed a hunger for publicity and attention for the brutal aspects of the game which the League equates with profit.

I don’t understand why they get away with head shots. If you and I exchanged words in a bar and it led to going outside to fight. I hit you in the head and you walk away missed up and dies later at the Hospital what do you think would happen to me. I would say 2nd degree murder charge but they get nothing if it happens in Hockey just an apology.

Maybe I project too much from what you say, but your point is relevant to arguments about the police investigation into Chara after the Pacioretty hit. I for one thought it was absolutely the right thing to do in the circumstances, and I only regret that it seems to have ended up as mere window-dressing.

we better not trade much for Clowe… his shoulder is messed up and has 0 goals this year. now maybe a change of scenary would be good for him, but you don’t trade prospects and picks for a 0 goal scorer with a bum shoulder because he happens to be tall

Completely agree.
At the same time, if MB should somehow decide that Clowe has value and gets him, I’d treat the decision with the good faith that the GM has earned.
But I just don’t see him being interested.

I agree! I wish we could get him back and keep Ryder. Lol! I think he would recapture the magic. Maybe his wife/kids being in Mtl(I think they still are??) is affecting him. Whatever we think now, he brought a brilliance to the HABS last year.

I’m sure that has something to do with it all right. Yes, mid-season trades and all they entail are part and parcel of life in professional hockey. But bottom line: you love your wife and kids, they’re in Montreal, you’re in Texas. Are you happy?

And yes, if we could have LAST year’s Cole back, we could forget about Clowe! And Cole would have earned this year’s playoffs on the strength of busting his butt for us all through a crap season.

I have a feeling Nieuwendyk won’t have Cole on the books in the fall. He was debating retirement when the new CBA was agreed on, I can’t imagine having such an awful season will give him incentive to come back

Seriously guys, Clowe isn’t worth giving out Leblanc for a rental player, and I think Bergevin knows it and San Jose will still want something good in return. I’m thinking Bergevin will come up with another hockey deal, something Habs need and in return in what Sharks need. Like skill for size trade? Gio for Clowe + 3rd round pick?

“Responding to the media , or playing to the media, or listening to the fans is the quickest way to start losing” – Sam Pollock

I’m not saying Clowe is the answer or will produce. I’m saying a hockey trade, y’all know what that is don’t ya? Clowe can screen the opposition goalies better than Gio can, and has anyone seen how much Gionta has been declining this shortened season? What will he’ll be like next season, a 5’7 5m player for another year or a possible clear 5m cap space for next season?

Gio with 5m cap for next season. Its just my opinion, doesn’t exactly mean MB will make the trade happen, but if it’s anything like the Cole/Ryder trade, I’m just sensing, it might be another hockey trade thats in the works and it would definitely would make sense since MB said himself, he’s looking for trade options that doesn’t include trading the future for some quick “fix”.
Still, not saying Clowe will or at all be better than Gionta. But ask yourself, which one would you rather have? 4 forwards under 6 feet tall with 1 5m cap for next season or 6 players with size for a cup run this season and possible clear 5m cap space for next season?

Probably has, with kids like Gally and Chuky turning pro. That injury at the beginning of the season has really got his game stunk imo. Probably doesn’t help too when whole team can seem to put the puck in the net.

Yet another “Let’s trade the captain who has a NTC” proposal. Sure, the Habs will give up a 20 to 25 goal scorer for someone that can bodycheck. The season is saved! (Where is the sarcasm font when you need one?)

Steve, you have that so wrong.
Next press conference, Julien will lament the post-lockout schedule and the number of times he and his players have had to come into contact with the Habs, via which contact some Bruins, unfortunately and against their wishes, contracted an involuntary propensity for embellishment.

So whats the chances that we can sign Kristo. We really have no good forward prospects in Hamilton so if he was sent down he would obviously be the # 1 call up. I guess they would want to send him to Hamilton first, but I think they could use him more in Montreal. Especially with Bourque’s current situation.

Krsto (5’11”)would be a nice addition however I am concerned that we are not getting bigger.
Gionta 5’7″
DD 5’6″
Gally 5’9″ are currently in our top 6.
If Bourque returns that will help in the size dept.

______________________________________________________
“It’s just an opinion – I could be wrong”

For those who want to trade Diaz or Leblanc or some other good piece for Clowe:

Have you considered that this trade for a physical player with sandpaper, grit and point-producing ability may basically end up like the Dallas Stars trading for Erik Cole, i.e., some sandpaper and grit, but without the points?

Clowe hasn’t even scored this year. Huge red flag. And just like Cole, he may not turn it around. In fact, I’d be willing to bet he won’t suddenly explode offensively. So, essentially, the Sharks would be getting some good assets in return for a pending UFA that has become a 4th liner.

I had stopped reading Jack Todd and then heard he had written something sensible. Checked it out and yeah he had nailed it. And then another good article so today he makes it 3 in a row.
I like whom he recommends that we pick up by the trade deadline.

The only bad thing about sending him to Hamilton is that they would play him and he could possibly get hurt and screw up the buyout for next year.
I guess they could send him down and tell the staff down there not to play him.

He doesn’t play again for the Habs anywhere. After the Trade deadline, the roster limit of 23 is removed so he would come back and sit here.
Actually feel for him, he seems to take it as pro and remains a supportive team mate.

I don’t care what players MB is looking at. I wouldn’t make another team better with our future players. Just may backfire. It’s happened before ….. If everything goes right. We have as good a chance as any other team to win it all. Don’t upset what we have going unless it’s a sure thing.

Looks like to get Clowe, a team will have to give up an asset who is playing now since the Sharks are in the hunt. Is MB willing to do that? Not sure. Boston probably…the Rangers definitely. I’ll be surprised if MB makes the move unless he wants to dump Moen’s contract. My gut says the Rangers…they need a physical presence the most.

Not only that!
In the last 5-6 minutes of the period, Looch missed a an open-netter that my Aunt Bessie would have converted with a knitting needle, and John Scott flattened (I think) Gregory Campbell beside the crease, after the whistle, and both Thornton and Lucic were right there, few feet away. How did they protect their team-mate?

By going back to the bench and talking about it in sheepish but outraged whispers!

Only conspiracy got them that Cup. Boston is a hollow embarrassment of an imitation of a Stanley Cup-worthy hockey team. Until they change their ugly, self-righteous culture, I hope the Bruins spiral steadily downwards into loss after loss, bitter self-revulsion and internal division. Like rats in a sack.

Here’s hoping everyone had a pleasant day. I have been a critic of Josh Gorges play this season but the last three games he’s seemed to revert into the Josh Gorge we’ve come to love. Last nights sans PK, he was our best defenseman. Time to jump off the trash Gorges train.
Next up is Moen. He’s another player that’s taken heat this season but since the fight with Daddy’s boy he’s looked better as well. He won his share of battles last night and has been more physical especially last night. I still say that come playoff time we’ll see the true value of Moen.

Patterns.
He has been a solid defensive player and a team leader, and unless you are a fruit fly, his current problems look very short term.
We can argue whether any man or woman should be paid 4 million, but in the NHL, Gorges earns his magic numbers.
Let me guess – your software crunches numbers and stats, right?

I would say NO to trading any picks for a rental player.
People dismiss our 1st rounder and our 2nd rounders because it might not be a top end player, saying that losing one of them won’t hurt.

1) We can package them and move up in the draft. Our 1st + two seconds can move us up to Top-10. In a deep draft, is this possibiity worth giving up for a rental 3th liner?

2) Many very good NHL players were picked in the 2nd round. Bergeron, Subban, Lucic and Shea Weber are just 4 that I can think off the top of my head. How would you have liked to see Subban skating in let’s say Islanders jersey for 2 months worth of rental player?

Who is going to give the Habs their top ten pick for the Habs late pick and a couple of seconds? In this draft I don’t see anyone with a top ten pick trading quality for quantity. This is kind of a variation on the Moen + Weber + Kaberle for Corey Perry trades that are routinely floated around this place.

If the Habs want to compete for the Cup, they’ll have to improve their team. And they’ll have to give up something good to do it. It’s a hockey team, not a savings bond. Get the best rental you can and go for it when the opportunity presents itself!

I absolutely disagree.
There can be a team in the top 10 or top 15 that will be happy to get 3 draft picks for one, if they are after depth. It has happened many times before.

You would not trade Moen, Weber and Kaberle for 1st and 2 second round pick, so the value Habs offer is higher.
Corey Perry is worth more than a top-10 draft pick, so the value Habs get is lower.

So what the hell are you on about?

Secondly, a 3rd liner will not win you the cup. It’s players that Habs drafted and developed that are our core. Pacoretty, Price, Subban, Plekanec, Markov, etc etc … Would you be stoked if those draft picks were traded for a rental?

If you think giving up valuable picks for an average player will suddendly make us a contender, you live in a fantasy.

Also, show me the team that has been regularly giving up draft picks for rental players that dominates the league.

Sellers??
Florida, Calgary and Colorado are the only teams more than 4 points out of a playoff spot. Buffalo is 3 points out but by trading Leopold, does that mean sellers? I think yes.
Dallas traded Morrow and they are only 1 point out.
SJ traded Murray but they are still in a playoff spot.

So I am currently counting 4 teams in selling mode, with games tonight through Tuesday perhaps adding another couple of teams. Thoughts?
Na Na Na Les Canadiens Les Canadiens

Yeah not many sellers out there. Most bubble teams are trading their UFA players but thats about it. I think it will be a pretty quiet trade deadline. Standings are too close. In the West their are 6 teams within 2 points of the 8th spot.

I totally can see trading players on the active roster while being in the hunt. When the offer is too good to pass, you do. It’s called improving your team with a hockey deal. Remember Gainey trading Rivet to SJ while only a few points from a PO spot for a first and Gorges. the first became Pacioretty.

He should never have left in the 1st place. He was a fan favorite for years. That dipshit Carbonneau tried to ruin his career but Ryder came back even stronger than ever. Hopefully he will want to resign with us and realize that Carbonneau is no longer part of the organization and hopefully never ever will again. If they can make him realize that then he may resign.

Was back then a huge Ryder fan and I still am one today. Was so sad to see him as a Bruin and that we never gave him long term deal. Happy he came back (through trade obviously) but all in all was a great move.

I know Carbo had issues with him but I had also heard Ryder had drinking issues and was drew into the cities temptations.

I’m sure he was no angel, I doubt he was the only one who was out partying. As much as I hate the Bruins I was glad Ryder came back the next year and put it to the Habs in the playoffs, and then put it to them 2 years later. Karma is a bitch. Lets keep him on our side from now on.

That came right from the heart. Ryder was a loyal player for this team for years and then Carbo came in as headcoach for a year or 2 and sent him packing because he didn’t like him. I used to be a Carbo fan until he did what he did to Ryder.

Paper airplanes and a too laid back attitude = Carbo not liking Ryder. Ryder is an offensive weapon but his D is lackadaisical and weak.
However, not every player has the desire to be good at D as well as scoring 30+. Right now, a 30+ scorer in the NHL is a rare commodity. Someone will offer him $5mil+.

I think it’s highly doubtful he will be a Hab next year. This may be his last chance to cash in on a lucrative contract. He’s playing too good, so someone is going to offer him more $’s and term than MB will be willing to.

It’s still relatively early to be discussing playoff matchups, but the way things are going, we’re looking at the Devils.

I think we take them in 5 or 6, but I gotta say, Marty still scares me in the playoffs. If he steals a game or two, we could be in trouble. And yes, I know that the same is true with any goalie. But this is Martin Brodeur. IMHO, the odds are better for Marty stealing games than for James Reimer doing the same.

Looks like the Pens management know how too approach the play-offs with an injury formula as they shoot for the cup.”impressive” If you look at replay it’s amazing given Crosby’s side distance to the net that he took that mini cannonball to the teeth and jaw,poor Dude.
And for those pointing out Clowe is goalless and under performing , pretty misleading given Gomer is his center man! We all know what that does to players and a team by now,yet some of us like to push their agenda like they’re Sara Palins neighbor….please keep it real.

It’s a word Sarah Palin invented. She was trying to sound intelligent when she used it.

In linguistics, conversion, also called zero derivation, is a kind of word formation; specifically, it is the creation of a word (of a new word class) from an existing word (of a different word class) without any change in form.

It’s not misleading that he’s goalless…as for under-performing, I can’t comment on that, not catching many Shark games…all I know is that I hope MT does not give a first rounder for a guy who will be on the 4th line.

Here’s the best compliment I can pay our current #11: I’m out today playing road hockey with my nine year-old son, and he winds up for a shot, pauses mid-swing and says “I’m Gallagher!”, then smacks the ball into the net. How many thousands of kids are doing that these days?

Curious if Clowe was the guy who played his stick on the ice to interfere with a rush in the playoffs last year? Was that him for SJ? If it was, do we want a player like that? Still can’t believe he didn’t get a bench minor for that little charade.

Promote the Youth, Support From The Veterans and Remember the Heritage!

no way he loses his leg.. thankfully the bones did not break the skin so the risk of an infection is pretty low.
I broke my arm like that in a very similar way. both bones were completely snapped into one direction. thankfully it was also an internal break.
i will be shocked if he continues to play basketball though

Broke both bones at the top of the ski-boot, then flipped upside down, with the ski doing some helicoptering, grinding the bones to dust at the break. Took 5 months in a cast but came out fine. 40 years later, I can still feel the spot with my finger. Only downside is I lost the nerve for downhill skiing and never really got it back.

Yeah that was funny. I love Armstrong, that guy is hilarious too, you can tell he is one of those guys that lightens the mood when the going gets tough and cracks jokes, keeps the team in good spirits….. in order words… he is good in the room!

agreed – and watching COLBY A on the new show seems to be the primary jester that keeps thing loose with his French “speak” and humor against himself! Players like that are the mortar in the room of professionals that helps everyone appreciate the stress (while losing some) in professional sports – see Dirt Dog Kevin Millar (of, and YES, I hate the “Ruins and Laffs”)

id rather go all in for jagr if the cost is a 1st round pick id be ok with that as our 1st is basically a second this year and we have 3 second rounders already, jagr is the big bodied power forward/playmaker we need and he will accelerate galchenyuks development in light years it’s a good investment and one we have not been in a position to make in a very very long time.

did you see the bartkowski cross check – should that not have been 5 and a game and a suspension. it is because he nearly broke the legs of a non superstar sabre that only a 2 min minor was called? it was a very dangerous hit

That’s what I was watching.
I don’t mind a big guy not being especially tough.
But what makes me long for retribution in a most unEasterly way is a big guy who talks tough and then only goes after non-fighters, guys smaller than him, and goalies. I don’t need to see him get pounded, though. Happy just for the Habs all to treat him like the non-entity he is.

I’m not commenting for the trade of Stewart, but in reply to your so called “facts” which are actually “stats”. Don’t get me wrong, would love to have him under Habs jersey but certainly not Wiznewski kind of contract with the year he’s having.

It was HabSlap who said especially the Bruins, which is what I was responding to.

I don’t think I’d agree that size is a significant factor between us and Philly (it was before the big LA trade) or Pitts (was it ever?). Leafs, maybe. Size seems to have been the main component of their re-tool, which has worked well in combination with the emergence of Kadri.

But don’t you think that if the Leafs tried to pound us with size, we’d burn them with speed and forechecking (and hopefully Price)?

Cassie Campbell tweeted that the Boston Vs Montreal game is on CBC nationwide this Saturday.

It’s about damn time!

But ya I’ve noticed the same things you’ve mentioned. Jack Edwards in on OTR and TSN in general more than any voice from Montreal.

And why can’t we see Mitch Melnick and his radio show on TSN television in the afternoon on occasion. There are other large cities in Canada and it’s so annoying that everything you see on TSN, Sportsnet and CBC is from a Toronto studio.

Am very happy that my French is good enough that I do not have to depend on Toronto media. As imperfect as the French media is, at least they are NOT focussed on the leafs, and when they’re not over-reacting on Price or Subban or whoever… they tend to poke fun at each other, and they laugh as much as they complain. All those Anglo commentators always sound like they are in a pissing contest.